Mild satisfaction on AGP alternatives

A large survey among Belgian and Dutch nutritionist has revealed that they
are quite satisfied with the current AGP alternatives on the market, although
they are still open for new concepts, states Impextraco's
newsletter.

The ban on growth promoters has driven the search and development of
alternatives like yeast and yeast cell walls, organic acids, plant extracts,
pro- and prebiotics, heat treated grains and combined products. The attached
graph shows that organic acids and yeast derived products are used the most
extensively by Dutch and Belgian feed millers.

Combined
productsOut of the other possible alternatives, combined products
(organic acids combined with essential oils and plant extracts) are widely used.
Some respondents claim to use a combination of several products and/or have
adapted their feed formulation.

Room for improvementIn
general, Belgian and Dutch nutritionists are satisfied with the products they
are using. 50% of the respondents claimed to be satisfied, the other half stated
that they are satisfied but there was still room for improvement in some cases.
"The effect of alternatives is less pronounced compared to the growth promoters
used before the ban", according to some respondents. Especially in poultry feed,
it's difficult to find viable alternatives in some cases. In sow feeding, the
results are better compared to fattening pigs.

Most nutritionists
admitted to have altered their feed formulation when using alternatives. They
agree that it's not enough to simply replace one product by another. In the
post-AGP era, it's all about concepts and solutions.